I have seen countless warnings online about the dangers of toxic romantic relationships. I can recall numerous PSAs and even horror movies I watched growing up. I swore I would never let myself get trapped in a relationship that could hurt me. Little did I know it would be my very own friends who would challenge me in ways I hadn’t anticipated. Transitioning from eighth grade to high school is difficult for anyone, but I faced it during the COVID-19 lockdown, when the excitement of new beginnings was shadowed by isolation. When in-person school resumed, I was eager to meet new people and find friendships that would bring energy back into my life. The group I joined from sophomore to junior year would completely change how I understood the importance of self-respect and healthy friendships. High school was big and intimidating, and I dreamed of having a cool group like in the movies: friends who supported each other through thick and thin. That’s what I thought I had found. With them, I always had someone to sit with at lunch, to wait with after school, and to hang out with on weekends. I remember looking at people who sat alone during lunch and feeling lucky. I grew especially close to one girl, who I considered my best friend. We rode the train home together every day, sharing jokes and little details of our lives. Soon, I noticed patterns that made me uncomfortable. Hurtful jabs disguised as “jokes,” arguments that chipped away at my confidence, and pressure to compromise my values just to fit in. My mental and emotional health suffered. I became anxious, second-guessed myself constantly, and felt like I was walking on eggshells. The thing about being in a group is that when no one reacts, you start to accept it as normal. I even found myself defending my friends when my mom urged me to distance myself after seeing our group chat texts. One afternoon, my crush joined me and my best friend on the walk to the train. She walked ahead, leaving me behind (a habit she’d developed over months). My crush turned to me and asked, “Why are you guys even friends?” All I could do was chuckle, masking how much it stung. Another time, when I asked her to stop making hurtful comments, she told me she’d say whatever she wanted. Still, I stayed. It wasn’t until another friend in the group confided in me that she’d had enough, tired of crying at home and scared to leave after being told no one else would befriend her, that I found the courage to act. That same day, the two of us walked away from the group. Together, we supported each other through recovery, validating our experiences and reclaiming our emotional well-being. In the months that followed, we built a new circle based on kindness and respect rather than competition or control. I also confronted my old fear of being alone, learning to see solitude as a chance to invest in myself. I picked up old hobbies and practiced self-care without guilt. I now know my well-being depends on surrounding myself with people who uplift, support, and respect me. I will never again sacrifice my mental well-being for the sake of simply not being alone. Now, I carry forward a deep respect for myself and the kind of people I allow into my life, knowing that the right relationships will only strengthen me. I have met some of the best people I know and love, proving that protecting my well-being opens the door to genuine connection.

Last night, my mom cooked the most delicious chicken with homemade tomato puree made from tomatoes grown in her very own backyard garden. For as long as I can remember, my mom has been gardening, a practice that began long before I was born. Growing up in Cameroon, she learned to cultivate her vegetables and maintain a thriving, long-term garden. Gardening not only served as a calming pastime that boosted her mood, but it also helped her save a significant amount of money on herbs, vegetables, and fruits. Watching her carefully nurture each plant, I realized how easily plants can fail without proper care. So during my summer camp STEM program, Project SYNCERE, when I was assigned to create a functional design of my own, I thought back on all the benefits of gardening and how it would help others. I was inspired to create a multi-sensor plant care device to assist and encourage beginner gardeners to succeed, while simultaneously reducing food waste. Beginner gardeners often struggle to keep plants alive due to a lack of knowledge about proper care. As my team’s product designer, with a simple breadboard, Arduino, C++ coding, and a few sensors, I created the ‘Quackbuddy.’ It was fully functional and capable of detecting and displaying multiple crucial environmental factors, including soil humidity, temperature, and sunlight levels. My team even established a fictional company, Botanitech, to present our product, which you can explore here: https://sites.google.com/view/botani-tech-official/home The experience inspired me to pursue a major in Industrial Design at my current university, with a focus on sustainable product and consumer technology design. I dream of creating practical, user-centered products that promote long-term sustainability in unique ways. While the device I built during the summer program was only a prototype, I hope to develop products that are widely accessible. Products that reduce reliance on industrial agriculture, which consumes large amounts of water and energy and generates significant carbon emissions, and products that help prevent food waste, as billions of dollars’ worth of produce are discarded each year. Looking ahead, through industrial design, I aim to create solutions that encourage sustainable practices in everyday life, helping people grow their own food, conserve resources, and reduce waste. In doing so, I hope to carry forward the lessons I learned from watching my mom nurture her garden, where sustainable habits first inspired my journey in design.

When I was only three years old, I watched the animated musical adaptation of 'The Princess and the Frog.' As a young black girl raised by a single mother, I saw myself in Tiana and embraced the film's morals, which continue to resonate with me to this day. The movie featured numerous songs, each sharing different lessons, from friendship to true love. However, Tiana's solo song 'Almost There' left the strongest impression on me: 'Fairytales can come true, you gotta make 'em happen, it all depends on you.' Tiana firmly believed that with determination, anyone could achieve their grandest dreams, a principle I became familiar with through my mother's real-life example. My mother, who had humble beginnings in Cameroon, recognized education as her path to success and seized the opportunity. She used her education to build a life in the United States. And driven by her belief in uplifting others, she selflessly prioritized the needs of friends and family. I witnessed her invest countless hours and resources into supporting others, often going above and beyond at work until midnight. Her hard work enabled me to live a more comfortable life than she had. Upon entering high school, to honor the role models I admire—Tiana and my mother—I strive to use my capabilities to pursue my dreams while also assisting others along the way. In any setting, be it social or academic, I absorb the knowledge others have to offer and contribute my insights. This approach has allowed me to help my peers when they struggled with subjects I was familiar with and to expand my knowledge in areas I was not. Inspired by these experiences, I developed a keen interest in computer science and product design/development. Accordingly, I actively sought out programs like Kode with Klossy’s Machine Learning and UC San Diego’s Introduction to Swift programming course. Within those programs, I had the opportunity to act as a group manager in designing a minimum viable digital electronic image classification app and design an electronic device that utilized multiple sensors (EX: temperature and ultraviolet light) to assist beginner planters. I followed newsletters and blogs to stay updated on the latest advancements in machine learning and changes in the dynamics of the tech industry. I understand the use of many free opportunities to learn more about my interests, such as the ones provided at my schools such as the Robotics Club and Society of Computer Scientists. In my pursuit of possibly following along a career pathway in computer science and product design/development, I want to acquire the qualifications and knowledge that only a college-level education and certification would provide. If I receive this scholarship, the funds would directly contribute to covering my college tuition and necessary living expenses. Though I do expect my interests to change as I age, I currently have an eager desire to receive a college-level education in subjects similar to computer science and product design. Attending college would allow me to work alongside like-minded peers and build a network of people who help each other build well-rounded experiences in their interests. In closing, I stand on the shoulders of two incredible women who have shaped my values and aspirations. From Tiana, I learned the power of determination and self-belief, while my mother's relentless commitment to education and uplifting others has taught me the importance of giving back. Receiving this money would be a pivotal step in helping me continue the legacy of strength, determination, and compassion that my single mother has passed down to me.

When I was only three years old, I watched the animated musical adaptation of 'The Princess and the Frog.' As a young black girl raised by a single mother, I saw myself in Tiana and embraced the film's morals, which continue to resonate with me to this day. The movie featured numerous songs, each sharing different lessons, from friendship to true love. However, Tiana's solo song 'Almost There' left the strongest impression on me: 'Fairytales can come true, you gotta make 'em happen, it all depends on you.' Tiana firmly believed that with determination, anyone could achieve their grandest dreams, a principle I became familiar with through my mother's real-life example. My mother, who had humble beginnings in Cameroon, recognized education as her path to success and seized the opportunity. She used her education to build a life in the United States. And driven by her belief in uplifting others, she selflessly prioritized the needs of friends and family. I witnessed her invest countless hours and resources into supporting others, often going above and beyond at work until midnight. Her hard work enabled me to live a more comfortable life than she had. Upon entering high school, to honor the role models I admire—Tiana and my mother—I strive to use my capabilities to pursue my dreams while also assisting others along the way. In any setting, be it social or academic, I absorb the knowledge others have to offer and contribute my insights. This approach has allowed me to help my peers when they struggled with subjects I was familiar with and to expand my knowledge in areas I was not. Inspired by these experiences, I developed a keen interest in computer science and product design/development. Accordingly, I actively sought out programs like Kode with Klossy’s Machine Learning and UC San Diego’s Introduction to Swift programming course. Within those programs, I had the opportunity to act as a group manager in designing a minimum viable digital electronic image classification app and design an electronic device that utilized multiple sensors (EX: temperature and ultraviolet light) to assist beginner planters. I followed newsletters and blogs to stay updated on the latest advancements in machine learning and changes in the dynamics of the tech industry. I understand the use of many free opportunities to learn more about my interests, such as the ones provided at my schools such as the Robotics Club and Society of Computer Scientists. In my pursuit of possibly following along a career pathway in computer science and product design/development, I want to acquire the qualifications and knowledge that only a college-level education and certification would provide. If I receive this scholarship, the funds would directly contribute to covering my college tuition and necessary living expenses. Though I do expect my interests to change as I age, I currently have an eager desire to receive a college-level education in subjects similar to computer science and product design. Attending college would allow me to work alongside like-minded peers and build a network of people who help each other build well-rounded experiences in their interests. In closing, I stand on the shoulders of two incredible women who have shaped my values and aspirations. From Tiana, I learned the power of determination and self-belief, while my mother's relentless commitment to education and uplifting others has taught me the importance of giving back. Receiving this money would be a pivotal step in helping me continue the legacy of strength, determination, and compassion that my single mother has passed down to me.